Adele, Katy Perry Lead Mid Year Music Sales

It's hard to believe that 2011 is already half over, but Billboard/SOUNDSCAN have released the mid-year sales numbers for albums and digital songs, and two of our favorite divas are coming out on top!

Adele's breakthrough album 21 is currently the best-selling album of the year in the U.S. over 2.5 million in sales, miles ahead of the runner-up, (Lady Gaga's Born This Way), with 1.5 million copies sold so far. And my bet is that it will stay the top seller!

The albums in the #3 and 4 spots may come as a surprise to some, with Mumford and Sons Sigh No More and Jason Aldean's My Kinda Party holding it down behind the gals. Aldean's "Dirt Road Anthem" is a smash on country radio and is steadily climbing the pop charts, while the Mumford Boys have been consistent sellers all year.

And don't worry, Britney is holding her own as well, as her 7th studio album Femme Fatale is currently the #12 best-seller, and looks as if it will move into the top 10 by the end of the year!

On the singles side, Katy Perry and Adele dominate again, with Perry's "E.T." selling 4.12 million digital copies in just 6 months, while "Rolling in the Deep" is slowly closing in with 4.08 million sold.

And yup, Brit's "Till the World Ends" is in the top 20, holding down the #18 position with just under 2 million singles sold.

Very impressive girls! Click here to check out the top 20 singles and albums of 2011 (so far).

(Image courtesy of zimbio.com)

Adele Storms U.S. Album Chart

Sweet Victory!

UK songbird Adele officially cemented her status as a U.S. heavy hitter today, with her sophomore album 21 debuting atop the Billboard 200 with a reported 352,000 copies sold.

That sum is the biggest opener since Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday debuted back in in December both when they both topped 375,000.

21 has been sitting atop the world album charts for 4 consecutive weeks, and with this hefty debut in the U.S. she almost guarantees at least another week ruling the world of music.

And she's only 21 (hence the album title). You know who else is 21? Taylor Swift, and Adele's voice and songs puts Taylor Lautner's ex to shame!!

Here's a run down of this week's top 10 albums:

1. Adele 21 (352,000)

2. Justin Bieber Never Say Never: The Remixes (102,000)

3. Mumford and Sons Sigh No More (71,000)

4. Now That's What I Call Music 37 (58,000)

5. Justin Bieber My World 2.0 (42,000)

6. Bruno Mars Doo-Wops & Hooligans (37,000)

7. Eminem Recovery (34,000)

8. Rihanna Loud (33,000)

9. Nicki Minaj Pink Friday (33,000)

10. Lady Antebellum Need You Now (28,000)

(Image courtesy of http://timbretantrum.com/)

Billboard Hits 1,000th #1 with the Help of Lady Gaga

The Billboard Charts just hit a HUGE milestone, and a lot of thanks are in order to the one and only Lady Gaga.

Her latest single "Born this Way" roared onto the charts this week, debuting at #1 and becoming the chart's 1,000th chart topper in the history of the Billboard 100 Chart.

That's a pretty big honor!

The single also shattered a couple major records while on its way to the coveted 1,000th, becoming just the 19th song in history to debut at the top, (Britney Spears' "Hold It Against Me" was the 18th just 5 weeks ago), and also beating Spears' record for the biggest digital debut by a female ever. Gaga sold 448,000 digital copies of "Born this Way", besting Spears' 411,000 total HIAM garnered in January.

Hmm...not TOO happy she beat our girl Brit's record, but Gaga still has a long way to go to match her 11+ year career.

"Born this Way" also made a record-breaking start on the airplay charts, surging at #6 on the Radio Charts, besting Janet Jackson's previous best of #7 when she premiered "All for You" in 2001.

Here's a rundown of this week's top 10 singles, and again, congrats to Lady Gaga!!

1. Lady Gaga "Born this Way"

2. Katy Perry "Firework"

3. Bruno Mars "Grenade"

4. Wiz Khalifa "Black and Yellow"

5. Pink "F**kin' Perfect"

6. Enrique Iglesias "Tonight (I'm Lovin' You)"

7. Cee-Lo "F**k You"

8. Rihanna "S&M"

9. Black Eyed Peas "The Time (Dirty Bit)"

10. Britney Spears "Hold It Against Me"

(Image courtesy of matters.com)

As Expected, But Still AMAZING: Britney #1

Well everyone has been predicting it, and now it FINALLY happened.

Britney Spears' latest single "Hold It Against Me" debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week, selling a mind-boggling 411,000 digital copies this week, the best debut for a single by a female artist EVER.

Britney also becomes just the second artist in HISTORY to have multiple singles debut at #1 (2009's "3" was her other single to do so), sharing the spotlight only with Mariah Carey.

This is Brit Brit's 4th chart topper behind "3", "Womanizer", and the track that started it all, "...Baby One More Time."

This is a GREAT intro to Spears' upcoming 7th album, which promises more undeniably catchy dance-pop jams and classic Britney all the way.

Here's the rest of the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, but really, does it even matter?

1. Britney Spears "Hold It Against Me"

2. Bruno Mars "Grenade"

3. Katy Perry "Firework"

4. Rihanna Feat. Drake "What's My Name?"

5. Wiz Khalifa "Black and Yellow"

6. Enrique Iglesias "Tonight (I'm Lovin' You)"

7. Ke$ha "We R Who We R"

8. Pink "Raise Your Glass"

9. The Black Eyed Peas "The Time (Dirty Bit)"

10. Bruno Mars "Just The Way You Are"

(Image courtesy of askmen.com)

Billboard Year End Charts: Ke$ha Rules Hot 100

It was a huge year for pop music, as anyone who owns a radio could tell you, and the year end Billboard charts don't lie.

The biggest single of the year belonged to none other than the queen of trash pop, Ke$ha, whose "Tik Tok" spent 9 weeks at #1 and cemented the singer's monstrous debut in 2010.

Following behind Ke$ha is country superstars Lady Antebellum, with their single "Need You Now". The song was a #1 country hit and crossed over to the mainstream top 40 in a BIG way, becoming the second biggest song of the year.

Here are the top 10 singles of 2010:

1. "Tik Tok" - Ke$ha

2. "Need You Now" - Lady Antebellum

3. "Hey Soul Sister" - Train

4. "California Gurls" - Katy Perry

5. "OMG" - Usher

6. "Airplanes" - B.O.B. (Featuring Hayley Williams)

7. "Love the Way You Lie" - Eminem (Featuring Rihanna)

8. "Bad Romance" - Lady Gaga

9. "Dynamite" - Taio Cruz

10. "Break Your Heart" Taio Cruz

How many of these songs did you download this year??

(Source: Billboard)

(Image courtesy of posh24.com)

Kanye West, Nicki Minaj Rule Album Chart

They weren't as big as projected, but Kanye West and the new princess of hip hop Nicki Minaj both scored solid debuts this week, with their new albums My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Pink Friday.

West earned his 4th consectutive #1 album, as Fantasy sold 496,000 copies, a big improvement from 2008's 808s & Heartbreak, which opened at the top with 450,000. His new album has been getting stellar reviews, and although it hasn't produced a bonafide hit yet, it will most likely see solid numbers in the upcoming holiday weeks.

Minaj can now boast having the second biggest debut by a female hip hop artist EVER, as her debut sold an impressive 375,000 copies to land at #2 this week. She's only shy of Lauryn Hill's 423,000 units moved of her classicThe Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which was released way back in 1998.

The holidays are in full effect, and it's evident on the Billboard 200, with some albums moving hefty numbers. Here's a rundown of this week's top 10:

1. Kanye West My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (496,000)

2. Nicki Minaj Pink Friday (375,000)

3. Susan Boyle The Gift (263,000)

4. Taylor Swift Speak Now (241,000)

5. Jackie Evancho O Holy Night (142,00)

6. Rihanna Loud (141,000)

7. Justin Bieber My World Acoustic (115,000)

8. My Chemical Romance Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys (112,000)

9. Ne-Yo Libra Scale (112,000)

10. Glee Christmas Album (108,000)

(Source: Billboard)

(Image courtesy of sohh.com)

Sara Bareilles Has The #1 Album in the Country?

I don't mean any offense, but I'm sure most people didn't even know that Sara Bereilles had an album out!! Her second CD Kaleidoscope Heart sold 90,000 copies this week, a low number, but good enough to take the top spot.

Bareilles burst onto the scene in 2008 with her monster smash "Love Song", and has developed a loyal following ever since.

Good for her!

Here's a look at the rest of the top 10 albums this week:

1. Sara Bareilles Kaleidoscope Heart (90,000)

2. Eminem Recovery (81,000)

3. Now 35 (63,000)

4. Katy Perry Teenage Dream (59,000)

5. Disturbed Asylum (57,000)

6. Stone Sour Audio Secrecy (46,000)

7. Interpol Interpol (38,000)

8. Justin Bieber My World 2.0 (35,000)

9. Anberlin Dark is the Way, Light is the Place (31,000)

10. Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (31,000)

(Image courtesy of lyricsystem.com)

Females Rule Billboard 200

As expected, Katy Perry's sophomore album Teenage Dream debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 this week, selling 192,000 copies, earning her her best sales week ever.

Perry's last album One of the Boys debuted at #9, but went on to sell over a million copies, thanks to her massive hits "I Kissed a Girl", "Hot N Cold", and "Waking up in Vegas".

Coming in at #2 this week is Fantasia's new album Back to Me which moved 117,000 units. The set also debuts at #1 on the top R&B albums chart. It's nice to see her comeback after her suicide attempt earlier this summer, and her latest single "Bittersweet" is already a top 10 R&b hit as well.

Here's a rundown of the top 10 albums of the week:

1. Katy Perry Teenage Dream (192,000)

2. Fantasia Back to Me (117,000)

3. Eminem Recovery (98,000)

4. Usher Versus (48,000)

5. Little Big Town The Reason Why (42,000)

6. Kem Intimacy (30,000)

7. Justin Bieber My World 2.0 (29,000)

8. Randy Rogers Band Burning the Day (29,000)

9. Ray LaMontagne God Willin' and the Creek Don't Rise (28,000)

10. Devil Wears Prada Zombie (EP) (25,000)

(Source: Billboard, Image: Billboard)

Katy Perry Still Dominating The Summer

Katy Perry's unstoppable hit "California Gurls" continues it stay at #1 for a 6th week on the Hot 100, beating out competitors Eminem and Rihanna, who's collabo "Love the Way You Lie" stays put at #2.

One the biggest movers this week is Enrique Iglesias' comeback single "I Like It." As More Than Musiq predicted, the single skyrockets into the top 10, coming in at #8 this week.

Besides that, there are no big moves in the top 10 this week. Here's a look at the 10 biggest songs in the country right now:

1. Katy Perry "California Gurls"

2. Eminem Featuring Rihanna "Love the way you Lie"

3. B.O.B. Featuring Hayley Williams "Airplanes"

4. Usher "OMG"

5. Travie McCoy Featuring Bruno Mars "Billionaire"

6. Taio Cruz "Dynamite"

7. Mike Posner "Cooler than Me"

8. Enrique Iglesias "I Like It"

9. Drake "Find Your Love"

10. Jason DeRulo "Ridin' Solo"

(Image courtesy of specialnewsonline.files.wordpress.com)

Recovery Breezes Past 1 Million

The Real Slim Shady, AKA Eminem, continues his resurgence on the album charts, as his latest disc Recovery sold another 313,000 copies to stay at #1.

The disc has now surpassed 1.1 million copies sold in just two week, the fastest album to do that since Susan Boyle's mega-hit I Dreamed a Dream.

Em's on the way to having the biggest album of the year, proving that he still has not lost his touch as one of the biggest recording artists of the last decade.

Here's a rundown of the top 10 albums this week:

1. Eminem Recovery (313,000)

2. Drake Thank Me Later (105,000)

3. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (65,000)

4. The Dream Love King (58,000)

5. Now 34 (45,000)

6. Justin Beiber My World 2.0 (41,000)

7. 3OH3 Streets of Gold (41,000)

8. Jack Johnson To The Sea (35,000)

9. Miley Cyrus Can't Be Tamed (32,000)

10. Lady Antebellum Need You Now (30,000)

Source: Billboard

(Image courtesy of detroitrap.com)

Drake's The F***ing Best

Drake's first full-length studio album Thank Me Later sold a seismic 447,000 copies this week, easily putting him at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart, earning him the third biggest sales week of the year.

Pretty impressive for the former Degrassi star. Over the past year and half Drake has been one of the biggest names in hip hop, and this hefty debut only helps to cement his status as one of the hottest new rappers around.

Coming in at #2 this week is the latest album from Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers with their set Mojo. The CD sold 125,000 copies, giving Petty his best opening week ever.

Here's a rundown of the top 10 albums of the week:

1. Drake Thank Me Later (477,000)

2. Tom Petty Mojo (125,000)

3. Sarah McLachlan Laws of Illusion (94,000)

4. Now 34 (88,000)

5. Jack Johnson To The Sea (68,000)

6. Eclipse Soundtrack (55,000)

7. Justin Bieber My World 2.0 (47,000)

8. Lady Antebellum Need You Now (40,000)

9. Christina Aguilera Bionic (40,000)

10. Glee: The Music, Journey to Regional's (39,000)

Source: Billboard

(Image courtesy of collegian.psu.edu)

Perry Still at #1, Drake Breaks into top 10

Katy Perry stays on top of the Billboard Hot 100 with her latest single "California Gurls". The track sold nearly 350,000 digital copies over last week, and was both the greatest sales gainer and airplay gainer.

I guess she beat the sophomore slump! Her full-length album has not been released yet but based on the positive response to the first single I see a #1 album coming her way!

The Hot 100 is pretty boring this week, with no huge movement other than Drake breaking into the top 10 with his latest single "Find Your Love". Here's a rundown of the top 10 singles in the country:

1. Katy Perry "California Gurls"

2. Usher "OMG"

3. B.O.B. Feat. Hayley Williams "Airplanes"

4. Travis McCoy Feat. Bruno Mars "Billionaire"

5. Ke$ha "Your Love is My Drug"

6. Lady Gaga "Alejandro"

7. Taio Cruz Feat. Ludacris "Break Your Heart"

8. Eminem "Not Afraid"

9. The Black Eyed Peas "Rock That Body"

10. Drake "Find Your Love"

(Source: Billboard) (Image courtesy of swiperboots.wordpress.com)

OMG! Usher Collects His Ninth #1 Single

Although it's definitely not at the same caliber as 2004's "Yeah", Usher sees his latest single "OMG" rise 6-1 this week on the Hot 100, giving the R&B superstar his 9th number one single.

He is now tied with Elton John and the Bee Gees for the 10th artist with the most number singles in HISTORY.

Pretttyyy impressive if I do say so myself.

Not so impressive though, is how bland and cliche "OMG" actually is. Everyone, including Usher, has jumped on the auto-tune bandwagon, and this song is just soo not as good as his previous hits.

But it's nice to see him back on top; Usher's had a phenomenal career, but has seen lagging album sales since his 10x platinum iconic Confessions was released in 2004.

As a tribute to his 15 year career, here' a look at Usher's 9 number one singles, as well as the sales for his six studio albums:

Usher's #1 Singles:

1998: Nice & Slow

2001: U remind Me

2001: U Got It Bad

2004: Yeah!

2004: Burn

2004: Confessions Part II

2004: My Boo (With Alicia Keys)

2008: Love in This Club

2010: OMG

Usher's Album Sales:

1994: Usher (50,000)

1997: My Way (6 million)

2001: 8701 (4 million)

2004: Confessions (10 million)

2008: Here I Stand (1 million)

2010: Raymond Vs. Raymond (538,000 and counting)

(Image courtesy of hiphoproll.com)

Teen Dream Fever

Justin Bieber, the newest 16-year-old pop-tart, lands at #1 this week on the Billboard 200 with his second album My World 2.0, which sold a robust 283,000 last week.

With his #1 debut, Bieber becomes the youngest solo male artist to top the Billboard 200 since August of 1963, when Stevie Wonder held the top spot for a week with Little Stevie Wonder/The 12-Year-Old Genius, when he was 13.

Bieber also has the #5 best-selling album in the country with his debut CD My World.

Pretty impressive for a sophomore in high school!

Coming in at the #2 spot this week is our girl Monica, who's album Still Standing sold a respectable 184,000 copies. Credit the strong opening sales to her latest single "Everything to Me", which is holding down the top spot on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts.

Here's a rundown of this week's top 10 albums:

1. Justin Bieber My World 2.0 (283,000)

2. Monica Still Standing (184,000)

3. Now That's What I Call Music 33 (135,000)

4. Lady Antebellum Need You Now (78,000)

5. Justin Bieber My World (50,000)

6. She & Him Volume 2. (47,000)

7. Ludacris Battle of the Sexes (45,000)

8. Lady Gaga The Fame (41,000)

9. Marvin Sapp Here I Am (39,000)

10. Black Eyed Peas The E.N.D. (34,000)

(Image courtesy of bsckids.com)

Britney Named Music's Sexiest

Billboard released the results of their sexiest women in music poll, and coming in first, (no surprise here), was Britney Spears!!

The pop icon scored 27% of the vote, good enough to beat out runner-up Beyonce, who only received 13%.

This has been a good week for Brit-Brit! Not only was she named the sexiest woman in music, but her new ads for Candies just debuted all over the world!! And she looks ferocious, if do say so myself!

Other sexy females who made the list include Miley Cyrus (WTF?) at #3, Rihanna at #4, and Lady Gaga, who rounds out the top 5.

On the men's side, Adam Lambert came in first with 20% of the total votes.

Really? That drama QUEEN? Pa-Lease.

Other deserving men on the list include Nick Jonas at #2, d-bag Chris Brown at #3, Justin Timberlake at #4, and Enrique Iglesias in the 5 spot.

What do you think of these results??

(Image courtesy of chinadaily.com)

It's Sexy Time

Billboard.com has just released the "50 Sexiest Songs of All Time" and let me tell you, this list is frickin ridiculous!

I'll let you check it out, but these sexy tunes run the gamut of legit hot (Cassie's "Me and U", Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On") to the obnoxiously cheesy (Heart's 'All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You", The Captain and Tennille's "Do That To Me One More Time.")

I was not impressed by their pick for the #1 most sexy song; it's soo cheesy!! And I think it's actually a joke...well I hope it is...

Check out the list for yourself!

Billboard's Sexiest Songs

(Image courtesy of atlantaprideweekend.com)

Billboard's Top Artist of the Year is....

Taylor Swift, of course!!

The country titan comes in at #1 for all artists this year, as well as being the #1 female artist of the year as well.

Swift's wild ride has been non-stop, with the release of her sophomore album Fearless in November of 2008, which has gone on to sell nearly 4 million copies in the United States alone. From that album she's had hit single after hit single, with songs such as "Love Story", "You Belong With Me", "You're Not Sorry", and "Fifteen."

The top male artist of the year was Kanye West. Enough said, he's a d-bag and has literally fallen off the face of the earth after the huge backlash he received after interrupting Swift's acceptance speech at the MTV Video Music Awards.

This was the year of WOMEN, with the top 3 artists of 2009 taken up by all women. Beyonce is in the runner-up position this year, with Lady Gaga at #3. Teeny-bopper Miley Cyrus finishes the year at #5, while Pop Queen Britney Spears makes a triumphant return to the top 10 at #7. Pink finishes the female domination at #10.

Here are the top 10 overall artists of the year:

1. Taylor Swift
2. Beyonce
3. Lady Gaga
4. Black Eyed Peas
5. Miley Cyrus
6. Kanye West
7. Britney Spears (Woop!)
8. T.I.
9. Nickelback
10. Pink

Boyle Stays Put at #1, R.Kelly Cracks Top 5

Susan Boyle's debut album "I Dreamed a Dream" makes it two weeks at the top of the Billboard 200, selling another 527,000 copies, to bring its grand total to 1.23 million in just two weeks.

WOW! This is a huge feat, considering that already makes Boyle's CD the 10th best-selling album of the year!

The only top 10 debut this week is from R&B veteran R.Kelly, whose "Untitled" comes in at #4 with 114,000. Kelly has been pretty low key the last couple of years, and this album has not produced a hit single yet so expect a fairly steep drop next week!

Here is a rundown of this week's top 10 best-selling albums:

1. Susan Boyle "I Dreamed a Dream" (527,000)

2. Andrea Bocelli "My Christmas" (428,000)

3. Taylor Swift "Fearless" (127,000)

4. R. Kelly "Untitled" (114,000)

5. Lady Gaga "The Fame" (84,000)

6. Carrie Underwood "Play On" (81,000)

7. Norah Jones "The Fall" (80,000)

8. Michael Jackson "This is It" (75,000)

9. New Moon Soundtrack (72,000)

10. Michael Buble "Crazy Love" (72,000)

(Image courtesy of mamimagazine.com)

Boyle Breaks Records

This is crazy!

Former Britain's Got Talent runner-up Susan Boyle storms the U.S. charts this week, with her debut album "I Dreamed a Dream" selling a staggering 701,000 copies this week to land at #1.

This is the biggest debut of the YEAR, and biggest debut by a female artist in HISTORY.

Wow, who'd have thought that this little mousy lady would become the biggest pop star of the year?

Worldwide the album sold a whopping 1.3 million copies this week, a number that hasn't been reached since 2008, when AC/DC's "Black Ice" topped the million mark.

Congrats to Boyle, maybe now she'll finally be kissed!

(Image courtesy of www.susanboyle.me.uk)

Bon Jovi Back at #1

Veteran rockers Bon Jovi score the fourth #1 album of their career, with their latest set "The Circle" selling 163,000 last week.

The band has been consistent over the years, selling out stadiums around the world and releasing relatively successful albums, although they've never reached the success of their debut Slippery When Wet, which sold over 10 million records in 1986-87.

As a sign that the holidays are upon us, the #2 album of the week is Andrea Bocelli's "My Christmas", which sold another 136,000 copies.

Last week's #1 album, "Play On" by Carrie Underwood, falls to #3 with 128,000.

The soundtrack to New Moon is sitting at #10, but I expect a huge bump in sales next week as the film is released this Friday.

(Image courtesy of www.disc-connection.com)